Whenever you turn on the sports channels, the same thing can be heard from the commentators or analysts: “baseball is a dying sport.” While it’s a long way off from dying out, it’s impossible to argue that the popularity is decreasing. However, baseball is beginning to return to its power slowly and surely and we will dive into exactly why.
The world of sports is constantly changing . At least this is what several betting sites such as NFL odds suggest on their platforms.
Baseball is Fun
The argument against baseball is that it is a slow game that takes too long and because of that, it is boring. I can understand why people would say that if they are trying to come from other sports to become fans but the beauty in the sport is what isn’t happening. Take for example, you have a runner on second base with one out. The pitcher is sequencing and you know in a two-strike count that he wants to go to his curveball because of the break and at worst, it will be hit on the ground for an out. Watching the at-bat progress as the pitcher and catcher are working in tandem to sequence the curve is beautiful and makes it an entertaining mano y mano matchup.
But what about the fans, that is boring unless you are watching, right? Not necessarily. If you are watching on television and see the pitching sequence, that makes it a lot more fun to follow along as you watch the pitcher work one quadrant of the strike zone in order to get that perfect pitch to force the batter to get out. In between pitches, you can dissect what exactly is going on and understand that a fastball on the inside part of the plate is going to brush the batter away from the plate and set up a curveball away that he will be reaching for and make weak contact or swing right through.
The runner on second base also makes it interesting as if he has a lot of speed and is known for stealing bases, it changes up how you want to attack the hitter also. You need to change up your signs as a runner from second base can easily depict your signs if you are only throwing down one finger for a fastball or two for a breaking pitch. Making sure they do not know what is going on is critical. Also, needing to throw fastballs to reach the plate quicker and needing to speed up a pitcher’s movements so a potential runner stealing has less time to make it to the next base safely is incredible to watch in real time.
Romanticizing Baseball
There is no way to understate how important websites and podcasters are reviving baseball and bringing the fun of it back. They are able to talk about the game to a wider audience and make it more fun, whether it be talking about their play or what a player likes to do away from the game and make them more relatable than just millionaires playing a kid’s game. These people outside of baseball are making the sport more popular and continuing to create the next generation of players and fans. They help kids want to go out and play in their youth league or even just go outside and play blitzball with a few of their friends because that’s what their favorite content creators are doing. There is no way to feasibly measure how important this actually is but making the game more fun is going to continue to keep eyeballs on the product.